


Fractured

by MinnieTheMoocherDA



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Five Times Plus One, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-16
Updated: 2018-08-02
Packaged: 2019-06-11 08:42:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15311739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MinnieTheMoocherDA/pseuds/MinnieTheMoocherDA
Summary: Five times Gobi had to tell Cham to be a better father plus one time he didn’t have to.





	1. The first time

Gobi wandered around the outskirts of the small refugee camp, in the opposite direction to the many twi’leks that wished to pay their respects to the late Athena Syndulla. The courageous woman had been gunned down by a Separatist ship only this morning and the entire clan was still reeling from the loss. She deserved a grander ceremony than a hole on the side of the camp, but in times of war, even having a burial was a luxury.

Gobi had been one of the first to pay his respects. He had known the woman since his teens, when she had first moved to their village. Although, he had only truly gotten to know her well when his best friend had become smitten with her stubbornness and unbreakable will. One of the last things she had ever said to him was to make him promise to look after her family if the worst should happen.

Gobi was fulfilling that promise now, as he searched the nearby caves for any sight of the two remaining Syndullas. He thought he’d seen the pair disappear into them after paying their respects. The sight brought on memories of him and Cham playing games in the tunnels under their village when they were younglings. But now that they were used as shelters and escape routes, the wonder in them was lost and replaced with unknown danger. He cautiously walked through the winding caves, searching for any sign of them. As much as he understood their want to be alone, it was too dangerous for them to be this far away from the camp with the imminent threat of nearby Separatists and wild gutkurrs.

After turning down another winding tunnel, he noticed something bundled in the shadows out of the corner of his eye. It blended into the dark caves, as though it was a shadow itself. At first he thought it was just a bundle of abandoned rags, but on closer inspection, he realised that it was a young twi’lek girl, whose instantly recognisable light green skin was barely visible as she buried her head against her chest in as tight a ball as physically possible.

“Hera?” Gobi said gently. Not wanting to scare her, he crouched slowly in front of her.

Gradually, Hera lifted her little green head to reveal large, blinking eyes that stared at him as though she couldn’t comprehend what was real anymore.

“Unc-uncle Gobi?” She stuttered.

“I’m here.” He whispered.

It was as though at those two words a damn had burst, as not a moment later, she had flung herself against his chest in a flood of tears. Naturally, Gobi wrapped his arms around her to hold her shaking body close.

“I want Mama! I want Mama!” Hera cried against his chest, her tears soaking though his armour.

“I know _eoh uru _, I know.” Gobi said, stroking her lekku like he’d seen her mother do.__

____

____

It was almost unnatural to see the girl like this. Even at just ten years old, she was as stubborn and headstrong as her parents. She understood better than most children her age the perils of this war, and had adopted a detached, focused personality, as though determined to be a future leader like her parents. To see her like this was so unlike her and reminded Gobi of just how young she really was.

Hera continued to cry shrieks of anguish, until eventually she cried herself to exhaustion. Despite everything Gobi had seen in this god forsaken war, he somehow found that one of the most disturbing things he’d ever witnessed.

Gently he lifted up her limp body which was neither awake nor asleep back to camp.

Most people seemed to have paid their respects by the time they arrived back and had started to settle down for the night. At least as much as they could on the hard desert like ground.

Gobi noticed one of Hera’s aunts setting up one of their few tents and went over to her.

“Would you mind watching her for a moment?” He asked. The woman didn’t hesitate to take the girl into her loving arms with a kind, yet sad smile.

With a nod of gratitude, Gobi left to find the last remaining Syndulla.

His instincts took him back to the meandering caves that had somehow grown even more sinister in the short time between dusk and night. The shadows that once told fun stories, now held threats of unseen enemies. But he kept going, desperate to find his friend.

Suddenly, an unnatural growl came from the tunnel ahead and Gobi didn’t stop to think before following the sound, afraid of what it could mean. He followed the ghastly noise until he came to find that it belonged to a figure pounding the cave walls with beastly ferocity. It was Cham.

Gobi watched in horror as he punched and scratched at the wall with untamed anger, causing his nails and knuckles to bleed. He continued attacking it, as though under the delusion that the wall was responsible for his wife’s death.

The moment Cham started to stop to breathe, Gobi walked over to him.

“Cham.” He said calmly, his hands raised so the man knew he wasn’t a threat. Cham spun round, his fist prepared for a fight. As soon as he realised it was Gobi he lowered his hand, but the anger never left his body.

“I’ll kill them!” The man swore with a power in his voice that Gobi had never heard before. “I’ll kill every last Separatist on this planet!”

“Yes, you will.” Gobi said, not doubting the man’s words for a moment. He had spent enough of his life by the man’s side to know that when Cham wanted something, he wouldn’t stop until he got it. “But right now, you need to see your daughter.”

Cham blinked at him for a moment as though not comprehending his words before his eyes widened and he grabbed Gobi’s shoulders in panic, his mind jumping to the worst.

“Why? What’s wrong? Is she alright? Is she hurt? Is-“

“Cham!” Gobi shouted, unsure of how else to get through to him in this state. He put his own hands on tops of Cham’s where they clutched his shoulders to try and calm him down.

“She’s fine. At least physically.” He told him before sighing. He knew Cham wasn’t going to like the next words that came out of his mouth but he needed to hear them. “She’s a child grieving her mother. She’s going to need her father to get through this.”

“I can’t.” Cham said in his usual stubborn manner, his eyes betraying his fear. He then glanced away as his eyes clouded over in memory. “Athena was always better at comforting her than me.”

“Well you’re going to have to. She needs you.” Gobi said, his tone kind but his words harsh, hoping that for once Cham would listen to someone besides himself or Athena.

Cham’s whole body sighed. He leant forward until he was slumped against Gobi, his arms hung loosely around his neck. In return Gobi wrapped his hands around his best friend’s back, being the anchor he knew that he so desperately needed right now. He held him as the man finally allowed himself to cry. Hot tears pooled on his shoulder until they dripped down his shirt to mix with Hera’s. Gobi had known Cham for as long as he could remember, and not once had he ever seen him act like this. They stayed there for what felt like a lifetime.

Eventually, Cham’s body ran out of tears to cry. They stayed there for a few minutes in comfortable silence, with him just leaning against Gobi as he regained its strength. After a while, he managed to unravel himself from Gobi to stand up by himself.

“We must return to camp. Our people need us.” Cham said his voice steady as though he was delivering a speech before marching along the cave in the direction of the camp. However this only betrayed to Gobi how broken he must feel if he was using that voice to talk to him.

He told himself that Cham had to be feeling at least partly like himself if he was bossing people around again. Although it was a weak excuse even to his ears. He doubted the scars of losing the love of his life would every truly be gone.

He jogged slightly to catch up with his best friend as they walked back to camp. When they came near, Cham rolled his shoulders back and jutted out his chin with a face void of emotion, looking every bit like the strong, immovable leader they needed him to be. Gobi wished that for once Cham would put his own needs above his peoples’, but he knew that the wish was hopeless.

When they made it to the tent where Hera was curled up in a ball Cham froze, torn over wanting to help his daughter but not sure how.

Gobi noticed this and gave him small nudge. Startled, Cham looked down at his blue skinned friend. Gobi gestured towards Hera with an encouraging smile, hoping that it would stir him into action. It seemed to work, as after a moment, Cham gave him a thankful nod, before walking determinedly into the tent.

Cham lay down next to his daughter, who hadn’t been as asleep as she’d first appeared, as a moment later she curled herself up next to his side. A brief flash of something crossed Cham’s face. The closest emotion Gobi could describe it as was fear. He slowly wrapped his arms around his daughter, before melting into her embrace and holding her as close to him as possible, as though trying to shield her from everything in the world.

Gobi watched the scene with a warm heart, glad that some good had come out of this day of misery.


	2. The second time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set in season 3 episode 3 of the clone wars “supply lines”. Lots of the dialogue are taken straight from the episode.

“General Ima-Gun Di!” Captain Keeli called. Gobi watched as he raced over to the Kajain’sa’Nikto Jedi. The clone stood up straight, like the good soldier he was, but the exhaustion was clear in his voice. “The right flank has collapsed. The droid army will be closing in on our position.”

Gobi silently cursed. They’d been pinned down at the bottom of this mountain for days. The droids were closing in on them more with every second and their supplies were running drastically low. He was startled from his thoughts when Cham rushed over on the back of his blurrg, most likely after over hearing the captain.

“What about reinforcements?” Cham demanded, circling General Di with his blurrg, probably in an attempt to intimidate him. Gobi wasn’t sure that this tactic would prove useful since the Jedi seemed to have a natural affinity with the creatures and had probably been threatened by more imposing people than Cham.

“Communication has been difficult.” Di said diplomatically. “But I promise you Cham, the Republic will not abandon Ryloth.”

Gobi knew that while the general might believe his own words, that didn’t necessarily make them true. But at this point it didn’t matter. The only way they would survive would be if they received that aid.

“I’ve heard enough of your promises Jedi!” Cham spat, his belief in the general clearly not as solid as Gobi’s. ”The fact remains that if we stay here without reinforcements we are all going to die. Gobi, tell the people we’re leaving.”

Gobi stood to attention to address his leader, not his best friend. “Yes sir.”

Captain Keeli then glanced at them as though Cham’s idea was crazy, which Gobi supposed wasn’t entirely inaccurate.

“I don’t think you understand, the right flank has collapsed! There is no leaving. We’re stuck here together.”

The Captain didn’t seem to be any happier about that then Cham was. Although, Gobi suspected that his reasons were more to do with the fact that he didn’t know how to deal with soldiers who refused to follow orders.

Gobi wasn’t surprised when Cham didn’t listen and snarled at the man before leaving on his blurrg. The captain threw his hands up in the air in exasperation ,before marching off to find some droids to re-direct his anger towards. Once they’d left, General Di turned to face Gobi, the worry starting to show on the Jedi’s usually emotionless face.

“You have to convince him to keep your people here until reinforcements arrive.” Di told him.

Gobi nearly scoffed. Trying to convince Cham to do something he didn’t want to do was like trying to teach a blurrg to become a Jedi.

“I can try, but he’s not going to listen to me.”

He was surprised when Di placed a hand on his shoulder and was unsure what to make of the knowing smile on the other man’s face.

“He will.” General Di said with certainty that only a Jedi could produce. Gobi still highly doubted that he would be able to change Cham’s mind, but he supposed it was worth a try. Nodding in reluctance, he headed off to once again search for his best friend.

The base where they were pinned down was depressingly small, so it didn’t take him very long to find him. He was attending an injury on his blurrg’s leg, as far away from any other being he could get in this camp. Gobi held out his hand for the blurrg to smell. She sniffed his hand before looking up with large round eyes, as though silently asking him why there wasn’t any food there.

“I’m sorry girl.” Gobi apologised, patting her head gently before moving towards Cham.

“Cham-“

“What!” His friend snapped, not looking up from where he was bandaging the leg. Gobi almost rolled his eyes. Great, Cham was angry. That was going to make things so much easier.

“Can’t you just hear the Jedi out?”

“Why? To listen to his plan about how he’s going to kill us all?” Cham stood up in anger. “We can’t stay here Gobi!”

“No but we can’t leave either.” He responded calmly, knowing that it was the only way to possibly get through to him. “Yes we are in a dangerous position here, but we’d be in an even more dangerous one if we left. At least here we have a base and we know supplies are supposed to be delivered here soon. If we leave now, we could be walking right into a separatist trap.”

“And what if the supplies don’t come?” Cham retorted. His anger had faded slightly at Gobi’s calm presence, but his lekku were still quivering with rage. “You know we can’t trust the Republic! They’re the reason why we are fighting for our freedom in the first place.”

He then leant against his blurrg and massaged his temples with his fingers, the worry and exhaustion clear in his actions. His shoulders sagged as he let his hands drop in exhaustion. “I just want what’s best for our people.”

“I know you do. Which is why you need to think about what is best for Hera.” Gobi said placing his right hand on the man’s shoulder. His words and touch seemed to finally ground the man, as he looked it Gobi’s eyes with sudden attention. “She is starving, she needs food. And if we leave she might die of hunger. Think of our people like you see her. You need to think about what’s best for them.”

Cham remained silent for a long time. So long in fact that Gobi thought that he might have been affected by a head injury that of course he would neglect to tell him about. But eventually Cham sighed, apparently haven taken his words close to his heart. “All right. We’ll stay here for as long as we can, or until the supplies arrive.”

Gobi was frozen for a moment in shock. He couldn’t believe that he’d actually made Cham change his mind. The only other person who he’d known to have been able to do that was Athena. He was even more shocked when Cham raised his own right hand to place it over where Gobi’s was still attached to his shoulder.

“Thank you Gobi, for making me see past my anger. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Gobi looked away, hoping that his blue skin would hide his blush. 

“You’re welcome. Maybe I should sing you The Ballad of Cham Syndulla in thanks.”

Cham rolled his eyes at the old joke between them. Gobi smiled at the rare sight of his old friend being happy.

“Please never sing that song again.” Cham told him playfully.

“You know you love it.”

They chuckled as they made their way back to the centre of the base, their minds more relaxed and clearer. They walked towards where General Di was waiting for them with another knowing look towards the pair that Gobi still wasn’t sure what to make of.

He watched as Cham actually listened while Di explained his plan.

“If we re-configure the flow system, we can turn our ship into a bomb big enough to collapse the pass. The enemy will then only be able to engage us on one flank. If we provide cover, the twi’leks will have enough time to take their families to the base of the mountain, where the republic supplies are scheduled to arrive.”

Gobi glanced at Cham to find that the orange twi’lek was already looking at him. Just as they had when they were younglings, the pair had a silent conversation with just their eyes and lekku. They both agreed that it was the best plan they had for their people to survive this mess.

With a nod, Cham turned away from him to face the general. Gobi smiled as he recognised the look on Cham’s face. It was the one he pulled when he was forced to admit that someone’s idea was better than his own.

“We will put our faith in your plan general. I hope you do not fail us. I will tell our people.”

After those words, Gobi watched as he marched away once again, but this time with purpose instead of anger as he went to rally their people. Whilst Cham’s decisions could often be rash, there was no denying that he always had his people’s best interests at heart. Something that Gobi had always admired about him.

He felt the Jedi’s eyes on him and turned to face the man. He didn’t want him to misjudge Cham for his actions.

“Cham is still angry. He feels betrayed.”

“He counted on republic assistance. And it didn’t come.” Di said sadly, apparently agreeing with Cham’s reasons for anger. “War turns promises into hopes. I wish it wasn’t so. We won’t be able to hold of the droids for long. You’ll have to move quickly to get your families out of danger.”

When the Kajain’sa’Nikto’s mentioned families, Gobi followed his gaze to where it landed on Cham, who was helping his frightfully thin daughter onto his blurrg. Gobi didn’t have any real family of his own left. Growing up he’d only had his mother but she had died years before the clone wars had even started. Cham and Hera were the closest thing to a family he had now.

He was startled from his thoughts when he noticed General Di holding his hand towards him.

“Tell him what I have told you.”

“I will.” Gobi promised, shaking his hand.

Once he let go, Di looked at him with that same infuriating look. Gobi was about to ask him the reason for it when the Jedi spoke.

“War often puts into perspective how short out time in this galaxy is. It would be wise not to dwell on ‘what ifs’ but to make the most of what we have.”

And with that, the Jedi left him to go and talk to his captain. Despite spending a considerable amount of time in the presence of Jedi since the start of this war, Gobi still had no idea what any of their enlightening nonsense was supposed to mean.

Still, he took the man’s words to heart and went to find Cham to tell him what the general had said. Cham didn’t seem particularly impressed with his words either, but he was too busy organising their people to make much of it.

After grabbing what few things he had left, Gobi mounted his blurrg before riding beside Cham over the mountain. They rode behind their people so that they could see that they were safe, and so that if the general’s plan failed and the droids broke through, then he and Cham would be able to fend them off, at least for a short while. Hopefully long enough to give their people a chance to run.

Gobi took his eyes of the crowd for a moment to where Hera was cradled against her father’s chest. He’d been forced to tell Cham that he would need to use a sling to hold her there like her mother had when she was a baby, as her body was too weak to hold onto him herself. The sight made Gobi’s soul ache. They needed to win this war soon. Before Hera or any other children had to suffer.

He was abruptly dragged from his thoughts however, when a ship landed barely a few meters a head of their people. In an instant he and Cham had their rifles aimed at the ship. But before they could bark any orders, someone had opened it up to reveal what was inside.

“It’s food and medical supplies from the republic!” They cried.

Cheers roared from the crowd and Gobi lowered his weapon in relief. He turned to speak to Cham when a young twi’lek woman ran up to their leader.

“Thank you chief Syndulla! We would not have received these supplies if it hadn’t been for you. If it hadn’t been for your heroism, my son would have gone another day without food.”

As the woman searched for something in her pockets Gobi watched the dark orange blush travel up his friend’s neck in fascination. It was so rare that he got to see the man flustered.

The woman had apparently found whatever it was she was searching for and handed it to Cham.

“I brought some nutrient injections from the ship for your daughter.”

Cham didn’t hesitate to inject one into Hera’s pale green skin. The effect was almost instantaneous. Her wide eyes opened and colour seemed to spread from where she’d been injected to the rest of her body. Gobi couldn’t help but sigh in relief. Cham was equally relieved. After checking over Hera, he then leaned down to take the woman’s hand in his own.

“Thank you.” He told her sincerely.

“After everything you’ve done for us, it was the least I could do.” The woman replied.

Gobi watched as she nodded respectfully before heading down the valley to where her son was waiting with her wife. He then faced his friend with a teasing smile.

“She’s certainly listened to ‘The Ballad of Cham Syndulla’. I think I should sing it in celebration of our most wondrous leader.”

“Gobi…” Cham said, but his warning was dampened by the open smile on his face.

“In our warrens Ryloth children, we gather and hide but still hear the call of Cham Syndulla-“

“Gobi!”

He almost thought about stopping, but then Hera giggled so he had no choice but to continue.

“We aren’t lost Ryloth children, we will turn the tide by following into battle Cham Syndulla-“

“GOBI!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Hope you guys enjoyed the new chapter! I should be updating this on a lot faster schedule than my other fics. Also in legends Gobi actually did write and sing Cham a song called The Ballad if Cham Syndulla and the lyrics used here are the actual lyrics. Xxxxxxxxx


	3. The Third Time

It hadn’t been a surprise when for the few months after the clone wars, the clone troopers and their commanding officers remained on the planet whilst they removed all their equipment and helped the twi’leks rebuild their home world. It was almost expected. Eventually all the clones left but some of the officers remained on the planet. Cham wasn’t particularly pleased about that but they mostly stayed away from everyone else in a small building they’d commandeered or their ship, so he left them alone for a while.

Those few years after the war had been good to the people of Ryloth and especially to Gobi. He had time to write more songs that did more than keep morale high during bombing raids and thanks to the influx of food he soon forgot the feeling of constant hunger. Although when he woke up one morning to realise his stomach was now rotund he realised he’d probably eaten a bit too much. Still, he’d rather that then be starving again.

It had been good for Hera too. Unlike him she was still on the slim side but her cheeks were now rounded with health instead of gaunt with starvation. She also finally had a permanent place to live and could go to an actual school. Gobi couldn’t even begin to describe how happy it made him when she babbled about all the interesting things she had learned that day.

However, Gobi wasn’t sure if the same could be said about Cham. Although he had always strived for peace once he’d actually achieved it he didn’t seem to know what to do with himself. He tried to return back to life he’d had before the war but he was constantly uneasy. He might not have trusted or even liked the Jedi that had helped them during the clone wars, but he knew that he had their best interests at heart, he couldn’t believe that they would betray them. And he might not have been the biggest supporter of the Republic either but at least he knew what they were. Like the rest of them he had no idea what The Empire had planned for the galaxy. So he made plans upon plans upon plans, just in case The Empire became like the Separatists. Gobi told him to relax and spend more time Hera, claiming that he was being paranoid. But of course Cham wouldn’t listen and dedicated his time to planning for an attack that Gobi thought would never come.

He sometimes hated it when Cham was right.

Eventually, the officers that had remained on Ryloth were joined by even more soldiers, some wearing a strange white armour that reminded Gobi of what the clones use to wear. It wasn’t long until these soldiers spread across the planet like an infestation of loth-rats, causing Gobi to realise that a new war had just begun. And when Cham ordered them to leave Ryloth willingly before he removed them from his planet by force, they responded by taking over his ancestral home.

That was how Gobi found himself fighting alongside Cham and a few members of the newly formed ‘Free Ryloth’ movement in an attemot to try and reclaim his home. They were pinned down by the crevasse a few metres from the house. They were secure here with decent cover and an escape route but they couldn’t move any distance forward thanks to a blockade of the soldiers in white armour that Gobi had only just come to learn were called Stormtroopers. He looked over the rocks they were using for cover, looking for any way around them when he noticed a section on the left side of the crevasse just above the Stormtroopers that was covered in fishers and loose rocks.

He aimed his rocket launcher at the crevasse. He only had one shot so he had to make it count. Luckily he hit it perfectly and a huge chunk of the wall came down, smothering most of the Stormtroopers. He grinned. It was a beautiful explosion.

“Great idea.” Cham said proudly, clasping him on the shoulder making Gobi blush. He then turned to face the rest of their fighters screaming “Charge!”

They jumped over the rocks, running towards the few remaining Stormtroopers that hadn’t been taken out by the wall collapse. As they fought, Gobi found that he missed the thrill and rush of adrenalin as he fought for his life amidst the ever present explosions with Cham by his side.

At the thought, he glanced at Cham, only to find that a Stormtrooper had snuck up unnoticed behind him with a blaster aimed directly at his back. Gobi didn’t think twice before shoving him out of the way to take the blaster shot himself. As the laser burned a hole through his chest, he locked eyes with Cham to find unbridled anger and terror reflected in them that he hadn’t seen since Athena had been gunned down all those years ago.

Once he fell to the ground, he heard Cham unleash an almost unnatural snarl before attacking the one who had been holding the blaster. Gobi didn’t see it but he heard the snap of the man’s neck.

He lay there on the ground as the battle continued raging around them. He couldn’t speak, he couldn’t move, he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t even feel his body, all he felt was pain. Gobi had no idea how long he had been lying there. He couldn’t even pick out any blaster fire over the sound of his heartbeat pounding in his ears. He wondered if they’d reclaimed the house yet. All he could do was look up at the smoky sky and watch as the occasional rogue laser passed over him

He didn’t even know that Cham was holding his hand until the man leaned into the line of sight, the determination clear on his face.

“Don’t worry, you will be fine. I’ll get you to safety. I will save you.” Cham told him as he pressed his other hand to his wound to try and stop the bleeding. But Gobi knew that even Cham’s stubbornness couldn’t save him now.

Despite the blood choking up his throat, he summoned all the remaining energy he had left to try to say the words he’d wanted to say for a life time.

“Cham I-“

But he never got the chance to tell him, as involuntary shivers tortured his entire body while his vision turned a searing white from the pain.

When he could see again he didn’t recognise his surroundings. He found he had regained the ability to move his head as he glanced around to find that he was in a sterile looking room with a bacta tank in the corner. The damp sensation of his skin that reminded him of the dew that clung to his body when he and Cham used to sleep outside in their youth, and made him think that he had been the one to use the tank. Gobi started to wonder how the hell Cham got his hands on a bacta tank and how much it had cost him. But thanks to his drowsy state, he didn’t dwell on it for long. His thoughts drifted to focus on the sensations from his hand. He glanced down to see Cham sat in a chair beside the bed where he was lying down, his head lolled forward in sleep and his right hand clasped tightly around his own as though he hadn’t let go of it since…yesterday? Last week? Last month? Gobi suddenly realised that he had no idea how much time had passed.

“Ch-Cham?” He croaked, happy that at least he could still speak.

Cham immediately woke up at the sound of his voice. Gobi tried to keep his focus on Cham’s eyes as they searched his own as though not quite believing that he was still alive. He soon settled however as he looked down at him with a smug smile.

“I told you I would keep you alive.”

Gobi was even happier when he found he had the energy to roll his eyes.

But the humour in the air was quickly drained when Gobi’s eyes settled to notice the bandage covering a large bump on his friend’s head.

“What happened to your head? Are you alright?” If he still wasn’t drowsy from the bacta tank, he probably wouldn’t have been bold enough to reach up and gently touched the bump. Thankfully Cham wasn’t offended by the gesture. In fact if Gobi was of a stable mind, he’d probably say that he leaned into it.

“Even after everything you’ve been through, you’re still worrying about me?” Cham responded, his expression one of disbelief and humour.

“Well, somebody has too.” He told him truthfully, tucking in a loose strap of the bandage.

“My head was hit a falling rock from your rocket launcher. Perhaps next time you could warn me before setting off one of your explosions.”

“I don’t know. You are pretty big headed. Taking out a chunk of it would probably do you good.”

Cham chuckled softly, lowering his hand. However his expression hardened as the mood become serious.

“I thought I might lose you.” He confessed.

“You will never lose me.” Gobi said, giving his hand a comforting squeeze. “I will always be by your side.”

“I know just... promise me you will never try to give your life for mine again.”

Gobi sighed, expecting the request. “You know I can’t do that. You’re my best friend. What kind of friend would I be if I let you die? And besides you are the leader of our people. They need you.”

“You’re our second in command Gobi. If I were to die then you would have to take my place. They need you too. And-“

Cham looked away for a moment, a light blush appearing on his cheeks. If Gobi didn’t know any better he’d say he was bashful. But after a moment Cham turned to face him again, his eyes full of emotions that Gobi never expected to be addressed to him.

“I need you.”

His free hand came to stroke his lekku. Still slightly drowsy, Gobi leaned into his touch. Touching someone’s lekku was one of the most precious displays of intimacy between twi’leks. As best friends Cham had touched Gobi’s lekku before but never with such delicate strokes as this.

“After Athena… I never thought that I would find love again but…”

Cham trailed off as he moved his hand from his lekku to cup the side of his face. Time seemed to freeze, and all Gobi could experience was the sensation of his sharp nails resting gently on his jaw.

He could scarcely believe it when Cham leaned down to place his lips against his own. They were as thin and as strong and as perfect as Gobi had imagined. Hoping this wasn’t some sort of strange fever dream, he pressed firmly back and brought his free hand up to hold the back of Cham’s head to pull him closer. Encouraged by this, Cham opened his mouth, allowing Gobi’s tongue to run along his pointed teeth. He was about to open his own when a loud smashing sound startled them both causing them to break apart.

Gobi turned to the source of the sound to find Hera standing in the doorway to the room, a broken bowl and spilt gutkurr stew at her feet. Time seemed to freeze once again but this time for a different reason as she stared at the pair with open shock. She then ran away in a panic down the corridor.

“Hera!” Cham called after her but she ignored him. Gobi couldn’t really blame her. If he’d suddenly come across his father kissing someone else, even years after the death of his mother, he’d probably had a similar reaction.

Cham sighed, turning his attention back to him. “I’m sorry. She took the loss of Athena badly and-“

“It’s alright. I completely understand.” Gobi reassured him. If this was how Hera reacted then he wondered how hard it had been for Cham to let himself love someone else after losing Athena. He supposed they would have plenty of time to talk about that later. “You should go and talk to her.”

“Why?”

“Because, you need to remind her that this doesn’t change how much you loved her mother, and that even though you may love me, as your daughter, you will always love her the most.”

Gobi was a little nervous about using the word love but the sight of Cham’s eyes lighting up when he used it quelled any fears.

He also seemed to agree with him about needing to talk to Hera but at the same time was reluctant to go. Possibly because explaining why you were kissing your best friend would be a very awkward conversation to have with your teenage daughter. However, he appeared to resign himself to leave but he still tried one last time to come up with an excuse not to go.

“Or, I could stay here with you.” He said, leaning back down towards him with a suggestive smile.

“As much as I would like that,” Gobi replied, smiling up at him. “You need to speak with her.”

Cham sighed fondly. “As usual, you are right.”

He then placed his forehead against his own so that their air bladders rubbed against one another. Gobi relished the feeling.

“I’ll be back soon.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

Gobi watched him go with a wistful eye, still not entirely convinced the past few minutes had been a bacta induced hallucination.

He lay his head back down and closed his eyes. Most likely exhausted from everything that had just happened, he fell asleep within minutes.

When he woke up, the room was still technically empty, although a small shadow stood in the doorway.

He wasn’t surprised to find that it belonged to Hera, who walked over to him once she realised that he was awake.

“Hi.” She said, awkwardly perching on the end of the table where he lay.

“Hello _eoh uru _.”__

____

____

The term of endearment seemed to dispose some of the tension in the room. She smiled sweetly before shuffling closer so that she was sitting by his hip. After a few moments of comfortable silence, Gobi spoke.

“I can’t even begin to imagine what emotions are going through your mind right now. It must have been quite a shock.” He said kindly.

He was surprised however when she fiddled with the hem of her dress in embarrassment. “Actually, I kind of suspected that there was something going on between you for a while. It just was still bit of a shock actually seeing it.”

Hera then looked up so that she could meet his eyes. “But that doesn’t excuse me for running away. That was rude. I’m sorry.”

“Hera.” Gobi said gently. “You have nothing to be sorry for. You weren’t being rude at all, you were just shocked. I completely understand your reaction.”

She shrugged.

“Yeah well, father told me that I should to apologise so I did.”

“I take it Cham’s talk went well then?”

“Yeah, he actually didn’t do too badly.”

“That’s good to hear.” Gobi said with a warm chuckle. His expression became serious however when he took her green hand in his blue palm.

“Hera, I want you to know that I would never try to replace your mother. She was an amazing woman.”

She looked up at him with her strong green eyes that remined him of her father.

“You’re pretty amazing too. And you’ve always been like another parent to me anyway.”

She then wrapped her arms around his neck, careful not aggravate his injuries. Smiling, Gobi put his arms around the girl whom he had always seen as a daughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah so I am literally the only person on this planet who ships Cham and Gobi...


	4. The Fourth Time

Gobi slowly blinked himself awake. He wasn’t sure what had woken him up. It could have been a noise but he quickly ruled that out since Cham would be awake too if he’d heard something. Thinking of Cham, he looked down at the sleeping man within his arms. His orange face rested against his blue shoulder while his hands were pressed lightly against his chest. Honestly one of the most surprising things about being in a relationship with Cham was learning that he was a little spoon. Not that Gobi minded. He found it adorable.

Still, as much as he would have liked to stay there forever he couldn’t ignore the feeling that something was off, so reluctantly he carefully untangled himself from Cham before getting out of bed. He then grabbed his blaster from his bedside table and quietly crept downstairs. His pulse quickened when he heard the sound of scuttling in the kitchen. His mind raced with explanations, from burglars, to The Empire, to Hera’s homicidal astromech trying to poison them again.

Slowly, he tiptoed towards the doorway until his back was pressed against the wall beside it. He took a deep breath before jumping into the entrance, only to come face to face with a green skinned teenage girl.

“Hera?” Gobi gasped in a mixture of shock and confusion.

“Hello.” Hera replied trying to be polite despite clearly being in shock herself.

At first Gobi thought that maybe she was trying to sneak out to some party. It wasn’t as if he and Cham hadn’t done the exact same thing in their youth. But, as his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room he realised that she was wearing her pilot uniform and that she had two large bags with her. One was full of long life food like ration packs and her ever faithful astromech was by her side. He also noticed the apologetic look on her face.

“What are you doing?” He asked, not sure that he was going to like the answer.

Hera was silent for a moment, as though contemplating whether or not to lie to him. Eventually she sighed and looked him directly in the eye, apparently having decided to tell him the truth.

“I’m leaving.” She told him, her voice sounding confident yet apologetic. “Father doesn’t understand that we can’t win this war alone. And even if we could, that doesn’t mean we should condemn the rest of the galaxy to face The Empire alone! I have to help them. I have to go.”

Gobi looked at the fiery passion burning in her eye that reminded him so much of Cham. She really was his daughter. There was nothing that would stop each of them from doing what they believed was right. It was just that their beliefs of what was right were the exact opposite.

There was no way that he was going to be able to stop her.

He sighed and pulled her into a hug. It made him happy when she didn’t resist and rested her head against his chest like she had when she was little.

“Just promise me that you’ll take care of yourself.” He wasn’t going to tell her to stay safe. There was no way that she would ever do that. But he hoped that she would at least think before diving into those inevitable situations.

As though knowing what he was thinking, Hera smiled ruefully up at him, apologising in advance for all the trouble she was going to get into.

“I will.”

Smiling he let go of her before turning to face her astromech.

“And promise me you’ll make sure she sticks to that promise.”

The astromech replied in a gibberish of warbles that roughly translated to “Duh.”

Chuckling, he turned his attention back to Hera, trying to commit her to memory, unsure of how long it would be until he would see her again. She had been like a daughter to him long before he started dating her father.

“Goodbye _eoh uru _.” He told her.__

____

____

“Goodbye _Twiva _.”__

____

____

Touched by the term, Gobi watched her leave.

He stayed there for a few moments, looking at the door where she had left, hoping that he had made the right choice.

Eventually, he decided to head back to bed, unsure of how he was going to explain this to Cham in the morning, when suddenly he turned a corner to find a gun pointed at his head.

“Kriffing hell Cham!” He cried at the orange skinned twi’lek, who quickly put his blaster away in shock.

“I’m so sorry!” Cham gasped. With his free hand he then gently cupped his face. “I woke up when I heard the door open and when I realised you and Hera weren’t in bed I thought someone had taken you or-“

“I’m fine Cham.” Gobi reassured him, taking his hand in his own. Cham seemed to calm down a bit at the touch but his panic still remained as he looked around.

“But where’s Hera?”

Gobi looked away awkwardly, unsure of how to tell Cham what had happened.

“She…she left Cham. She left to join The Rebellion.”

“Left?” Cham repeated in anger and worry. “She can’t leave! It’s not safe out there! I have to stop her! I’ll impound her ship! I’ll dismantle her astromech! I’ll-“

“And have her hate you forever?” Gobi retorted before letting out a long sigh. “Cham, she’s not a little girl anymore. She hasn’t been for a long time. She’s seventeen now, she’s old enough to make her own decisions. You have to let her be her own person. You have to let her go.”

Cham sighed, although it was more like a growl. He was clearly unhappy about it, but he knew that Gobi was right.

A very likable idea suddenly came into Gobi’s head as he thought about ways to cheer him up.

“Hey, at least one positive is that we will always have the place to ourselves so we won’t have to worry about any more embarrassing encounters.”

He said, suggestively placing his hands on Cham’s waist. Cham still wasn’t entirely happy, but this had definitely caused him to see the situation in a new light if the small smirk growing on his face was anything to go by.

“I suppose that is one benefit.” Cham replied, running hand along Gobi’s lekku the way he liked it.

That night might not have ended exactly how Gobi had thought it would, but he certainly wasn’t complaining.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Sorry I was supposed to update yesterday but I’m on holiday and my room has the worst WiFi. Hope you guys enjoyed the new chapter!  
> Ryl:Twiva means Papa Xxxxxxxxx


	5. The Fith Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set during Star Wars Rebels episode “Homecoming” and uses dialogue from that episode. Hope you enjoy! Xxxxxxxxx

“It’s Hera.” Gobi said, trying to keep his voice steady from where he was sat on their ship.

“What?” Cham spun around, instantly alert. “What’s wrong with Hera?”

“Nothing… it’s just… she’s the head of the crew we are supposed to be working with.”

Cham was silent as he paced their ship, trying hard not to show any reaction to this news but Gobi knew that this change would affect him deeply. Still, he was surprised when after a few minutes he still hadn’t spoken.

“Well?” He prompted.

“Well what?”

“Aren’t we going to change the plan?”

Cham sighed, stopping his pacing to lean over their table. His eyes crunched up as he dug his long nails into the table surface. Eventually he stood up with a reluctant resolve clear on his face.

“No.” He tried to sound firm but Gobi could hear the regret in his voice.

“No?” Gobi stated in shock. “We can’t betray Hera!”

“We are not betrayed her! She betrayed us by leaving! I have to do what’s best for our people, which hasn’t included her since the day she left our planet!”

“Not our people? She’s your daughter! Of course she’s your people!”

“No! The Rebellion are her people now!”

“She did what she believed was right!”

“SHE LEFT ME!”

The pair faced each other in anger. At some point they’d both stood up and were glaring daggers at one another. Gobi was the first to back down, suddenly sitting down in shock. They’d never gotten into an argument like that before. Gobi couldn’t even remember the last time he’d screamed at anyone that wasn’t him barking an order or shouting abuse at the Empire. Cham seemed to be in shock at their argument too, his eyes wdineing as he backed away from the table.

Before either of them could address what had just happened, Numa entered the room from the bridge. She looked between the two of them, immediately sensing what had happened.

“We are here.” She told them diplomatically before heading to the docking port without another word, not wanting to get involved. Gobi couldn’t blame her.

Wordlessly, Cham followed her without looking at him. He sighed. he knew this was just going to get worse the longer they ignored the argument.

Once Cham left through the hatch, he turned his attention to Numa who waited for him with a reassuring smile. It was hard to believe the little scrap of a girl she had been back in the clone wars had become one of their best fighters. He wondered what her life would have been like if she hadn’t grown up in a constant battle of war and oppression. He reminded himself that this was why he was following Cham. So that no child would ever grow up to live a life like Numa’s. Smiling back, he followed her though the hatch.

On the other side, Hera was waiting with her new crew. He took a long look at the girl he once cradled in his arms. She was no child now. In fact, she had grown into a beautiful young woman with a defiant gleam in her eyes that she had not doubt inherited from her father. 

“It’s been a long time father.” She said, her voice void of any emotion.

Most likely not wanting to acknowledge the guilt at what he was about to do, Cham ignored her and instead turned his attention to the tall human male.

“So you must be the Jedi I’ve heard about.”

“Jarrus… Kanan Jarrus… I’ve erm… heard a lot about you to sir. “ The Jedi who was apparently called Kanan bowed awkwardly, no doubt trying to impress the father of his girlfriend. “And this is the rest of our crew, Ezra, Sabine and Zeb.”

By the way the others rolled their eyes at his introduction Gobi guessed that in his nerves, Kanan had gotten their names mixed up. Hera’s ever faithful astromech warbled in offence at being left out. Gobi didn’t doubt Kanan would get an electric shock for that later.

“A fine group of fighters. Cham Syndulla at your service.” His partner introduced himself.

“The liberator of Ryloth!” The mandalorian girl piped up. “I studied your clone war tactics at the academy.”

“Ah yes, the Empire is still figuring out how to beat me.” Despite everything that had just happened Gobi couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the smug smile on the man’s face before he introduced them.

“And these are two of my finest warriors, Numa and Gobi.”

He wasn’t offended by being introduced as just his warrior. They’d discussed it long ago that while they wouldn’t hide their relationship they wouldn’t broadcast it either, especially to strangers since it would be unprofessional and Cham didn’t want Gobi to become an even bigger target for the Empire.

“Well, we should get to the briefing. There is a lot to do.” Hera told them, clearly wanting to spend as little time with her father as possible. Howver she glady excepted a hug from Gobi before they entered the room.

“It’s good to see you again _Tiwva _.” She sighed.__

____

____

“And you too _eoh uru _.” Gobi responded, the guilt twisting even deeper into his heart.__

____

____

He didn’t get a chance to talk to Cham to talk between the meeting and boarding the stolen Imperial shuttle. Cham and Numa went with the rest of Hera’s crew in the cargo hold, whilst Gobi stayed with Hera on the bridge.

“Master Windu spoke highly of your heroics at the battle of Lessu.” Gobi heard Kanan say as he sucked up to Cham in the adjacent room.

“Ah Mace Windu! Now he was a true Jedi! Out numbered a hundred to one we charged across Lessu’s energy bridge to certain doom. We would not be stopped. You know, they named that attack in song, The hammer of Ryloth!” Since they’d gotten together, Cham’s opinions on him writing songs about him changed for the better. And Gobi was pleased to hear him getting along with Hera’s boyfriend. He was worried Cham might dislike him but he was pleasantly surprised when he had taken the boy under his wing.

Hera didn’t seem as pleased about this however and shut off the door to Cham’s chatter in annoyance.

“Cham has taken a shine to your Jedi.” Gobi teased.

“It’s more the other way around.” She retorted stubbornly. Gobi chuckled. She was just like her father.

“And your Jedi, Kanan wasn’t it? He treats you well?” Gobi asked.

Hera turned to face him, a genuine smile on her face that lit up his soul.

“Yes.” She promised him. “He does.”

“And the rest of your crew? They treat you fairly as well?”

“Honestly, they’re more like my family than my crew.”

“Oh? That’s good.” Gobi said, genuinely happy that she had found people who loved her as much as he did. But he couldn’t help the involuntary flare of jealousy.

He looked down at her astromech who was stationed by his feet, to check that what she had told him was true. The small nod and gentle warbling assured him that she had.

“The galaxy has been good for you Hera.” He told her warmly. “You’ve flourished more out here than you ever could have on Ryloth.”

“Thank you. I just wish my father could see that.” She got a faraway look in her eye before quickly changing the subject. “And my father, how has he been?”

“Cham’s been… Cham.”

Hera snorted. “That doesn’t surprise me.”

Gobi was about to say more when Kanan walked into the room to talk with Hera. He watched as the pair the shared teasing yet loving looks that he would sometimes share with Cham.

As though summoning him by his thoughts Cham appeared on the bridge.

“Gobi, get ready for landing.”

As he left, Gobi tried to catch Cham’s eye to try to silently plead with him not to do this but Cham ignored him, probably knowing what he was trying to do. Reluctantly, he went into the other room where Numa and the rest of Hera’s crew were waiting. As expected, Hera’s plan went off without a hitch and they landed, albeit haphazardly, in the transport.

Unfortunately, the landing also caused Numa to drop her bag of explosives, leading the mandalorian girl to notice the bombs inside.

“I’m sorry my friends.” Numa said genuinely before she and Gobi reluctantly stunned them. Gobi went back to the bridge to find that Cham had already stunned Kanan and the astromech, and now had his gun pointed at his daughter.

“Father!” Hera cried in betrayal.

“I’m sorry. We needed your help to get on board.” Cham told her, but unsurprisingly it did little to quell her anger.

After Cham chained her to the controls she turned her attention to Gobi.

“ _Tiwva _?” She begged. The betrayal in her voice nearly broke his soul.__

____

____

“I’m so sorry.” He said although he knew it wasn’t enough. He was angry at Cham for creating this plan and angry at himself for going along with it. “I tried to talk him out of it but he wouldn’t listen to me! I’m not-“

He cut himself off but they both knew that he had been about to say her mother.

Hera’s features softened, although the fire in her eyes remained.

“He does listen to you Gobi. More than he ever listened to my mother. The Rebellion needs this transport. You have to convince him to change his mind.”

Gobi sighed, knowing how stubborn Cham could be. “I’ll try.”

Once he exited the ship however, he found that Cham had already headed off towards the bridge. Reluctantly, he found Numa and helped her to plant detonators on the proton bombs. Even the idea of blowing something up couldn’t make him happier.

Eventually they planted them all, but having recovered from being stunned, the mandalorian girl and the lasat manged to use a mouse droid to taze them and tie them up.

Gobi was still reeling from the effects when his comm went off. The lasat took his comm unit off him and answered it before he could stop him.

“Gobi, Numa proceed with our plans.” Cham said over the comm.

“Apologies General Syndulla, we have been captured.” Numa wheezed.

“Cham, we don’t have time for this. Imperial reinforcements are on their way.” Gobi heard Kanan say faintly over the comm. And where Kanan was Hera had to be nearby.

Sure enough, a moment later Hera and Cham’s arguing could be heard over the comm unit.

“I want freedom from the empire as badly as you do, but this battle can’t be won on Ryloth alone.” She declared, her voice as hard and proud as steal. “During the clone war, you didn’t just fight for our village. You rallied everyone to liberate the entire planet. You inspired me. The rebellion is no different. But either you couldn’t see that, or you didn’t believe in me and that’s why I left.”

Gobi took Hera’s words to his soul. He knew she was right.

He locked eyes with Numa to find his own feelings reflected there and after sharing a quick nod he stood up.

“I am sorry Cham, but I’m with Hera.”

He couldn’t hear Cham’s over the comm but he doubted he was very pleased with his decision.

“Well father?” Hera asked.

Cham sighed, knowing that if he didn’t do this then he would lose his daughter forever.

“I guess you have your chance to prove me wrong.”

Gobi didn’t think that was the most encouraging response but that didn’t deter Hera’s enthusiasm. Within minutes, they were executing her newly formed plan. It was all going smoothly until one of the stabilisers exploded.

Gobi was nearly thrown from his seat in the gun turrets as the ship suddenly titled sideways. He wasn’t sure how they were going to make it out of this mess when he heard the sound of Cham and Hera working together to make the ship balanced again.

Before long they had the hyper drive working and were able to escape. Gobi made his way back to hull with the others to find Cham and Hera for once talking in a civilised manner.

“When you left I was heartbroken. But now I understand you are like your mother. She was a dreamer like you.” Cham said, finally understanding his daughter and his role as a father. “I am proud of you Captain Syndulla.”

Gobi’s heart soared as he watched them hug for the first time in over a decade.

He smiled proudly at Cham as they went over to one of the stolen ships to return to Ryloth.

“So, you and Hera made up?” He asked. They were alone in the cargo hold whilst Numa went to set the hyperspace coordinates.

“Yes, I took your advice and listened to her.”

“Good.” Gobi said before punching him the arm. Cham looked down at him in confusion whilst rubbing his arm. Gobi didn’t hesitate to point his finger directly at his face so that he was almost touching his nose.

“Now don’t you ever make me choose between you and your daughter ever again!”

Cham’s shock faded as he took in his words and was replaced by a look of shame.

“I deserved that. I’m sorry. I never should have put you in that position.” With his uninjured arm he reached up to place his hand on Gobi’s shoulder so that he knew he was serious when he said “And she’s your daughter too.”

Gobi blinked at him in shock as his anger cooled down. He’d seen Hera as his daughter for a long time but he had never said that outload. He wasn’t sure how to respond.

“I heard her call you _Tiwva _.” Cham continued, trying to coax Gobi out of his silence.__

____

____

“And you don’t mind?”

Cham’s air bulges raised up, as though shocked Gobi would ever think that.

“Of course not. You’ve been a part of our family for a long time. In fact…”

His hand travelled down his arm until he held his hand before the orange skinned twi’lek knelt down on one knee. Gobi let out a small gasp.

“Gobi Glie, will you allow me the honour of becoming your life mate?”

He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know how to breathe. All he could do was stare down at Cham in shock who was gradually looking more and more nervous.

“Is that a yes?” Cham asked uncertainly.

Snapping out of his stupor, he rushed forward to crush his lips against Cham’s who nearly fell over with his force. It didn’t take long however for him to regain his balance and start kissing back with equal force. Eventually they had to stop to breathe, their lips still grazed against each other’s.

“Of course it’s a yes.” Gobi murmured against his lips. “But that doesn’t mean I’m not still mad at you.”

“I know” Cham chuckled uniting their lips together again. Their pointed teeth clashed like hungry teenagers discovering love for the first time.

Unfortunately, they were interrupted when the cargo doors opened with a loud bang.

“Seriously? I was gone for barely a minute!” Numa cried at the sight of them without any real malice.

Too happy to feel embarrassed, they stood up and followed her to the bridge, their hands intertwined as they thought about all the possibilities their future as husbands could bring.


	6. Plus One

Hera descended from the ramp of the Ghost to feel the familiar warm rays of Ryloth’s sun on her face. The moment was made all the sweeter by the fact that she was able to do so in a galaxy free from oppression and tyranny. They had destroyed the Emperor a few weeks ago and whilst there had still been some resistance from the remaining Imperial forces, it was clear that the Empire’s reign was coming to an end. So, Hera had taken the opportunity to visit her parents back on Ryloth that itself had been recently liberated from the Empire’s clutches.

She had parked the ship next to her fathers’ new house that had been built near where her old home use to be. It was simpler, with only a few windows noticeable from where they had been etched into the side of the mountain, no doubt connecting to at least one of many tunnels hidden inside that her ancestors had been using for centuries. It suited them. Her family had been fairly well off before the clone wars with countless servants and wealth, but over two decades of fighting had squandered most of it away. Not that any of them were complaining. After everything that had happened, just having a house was a luxury.

As she walked down the ramp, she noticed her father waiting for her outside.

“ _Aya _Cham!” Jacen called, escaping from her grip once he spotted his grandfather. Hera watched fondly as he leaped into her father’s arms.__

____

____

“You’re getting heavy _eoh uru _.” Cham teased as he struggled to hold him in his arms.__

____

____

Hera suspected that it was more to do with her father’s age than Jacen’s weight but she didn’t mention that.

She looked fondly at the pair’s interaction. Jacen was babbling about nothing and everything whilst Cham tried to balance him on one hip with a smile. She had been worried at first that they wouldn’t get along since they rarely saw each other and she wasn’t sure how her father would react to her having a son with a human Jedi. But she needn’t have worried. The pair got along like a house on fire, with Cham dotting on his grandson as much as Hera would allow him and Jacen idolising him as a hero and male parental figure. Gobi adored him to, he was always tying to feed him when they came over, claiming that the boy looked too thin and would teach him how to play on his guitar.

Thinking of Gobi, Hera looked around. But couldn’t see her _Tiwva _anywhere. That was strange. He was usually at Cham’s side whenever they visited.__

____

____

“Where’s _Aya _Gobi?” Jacen asked, taking the words out of her mouth.__

____

____

Cham fixed her with a look that she hadn’t seen in over twenty-five years.

He took his hand in her own, the other holding Jacen’s from where he had placed him back on the ground.

“Come with me.”

Hera numbly allowed herself to be pulled along. Her mind went blank, afraid of the answers her thoughts would bring. She was conscious enough to be surprised though when Cham didn’t lead them into the house, but instead along the carved path up the side of the mountain.

Her heart stopped when she realised where he was taking her.

“No...” She breathed as they entered the Syndulla family cemetery. Cham walked her over to where a clean stone commemorated the life of Gobi Glie-Syndulla.

She glanced at her father who was already looking at her with sorrowful eyes.

“Hera…I …I wanted to tell you in person.”

“No…” She echoed, unable to believe it. They’d won. They’d won the war. The suffering was supposed to be over. She want supposed to have to loose anyone ever again. She-

“Hera?” Cham asked, interrupting her thoughts and suddenly she was ten years old again, not knowing how to deal with the loss of a parent. Tears welled in her eyes and she couldn’t bring herself to try and stop them as they fell down her cheeks. The next thing she knew she was being held in her father’s arms as sobs ricocheted her body. She pressed her face against his chest as he stroked her lekku with soothing touches. At the back of her mind, she tried to remember the last time her father had been this fatherly towards her.

“Where’s _Aya _Gobi?” Jacen repeated, not entirely understanding what was going on.__

____

____

Before she could answer, Cham had knelt down in front him to place a consolidating hand on the boy’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry. He is dead _eoh uru _.”__

____

____

Jacen’s eyes widened in shock before he shook his head angrily.

“No he’s not. Stop lying! He can’t be dead. That’s not fair! He… he…” Angry sobs choked his words and Cham didn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around him to lift the boy up. He balanced him on the side of his hip as Jacen clung to his neck.

The sight of her son crying reawakened the tears inside Hera. Unfortunately Jacen was no stranger to death having grown up in the midst of a war but this was the first time it had affected him so personally whilst he was alive. Once again, she found herself in her father’s embrace, her son pressed against her.

“How?” She managed to ask through her cries.

She felt rather than heard her father sigh as he relived the painful memory.

“It was a few days before the attack on Endor. We were driving the last remaining Imperial forces from our planet, causing the Empire to act like a cornered animals they are and stage one last desperate retaliation. They launched all their remaining torpedo bombs at the refugee camp here in the Tann Provence. Gobi died saving the lives of Numa and her family.”

They stayed like that for what felt like a lifetime. Their cries the only sounds in the silent graveyard.

“He loved you two like you were his own.” Cham told them once the tears finally stopped.

“But we were his own? Weren’t we?” Jacen asked, looking up at his grandfather in confusion. Cham smiled sadly down at him in return.

“Yes. Yes you were.”

At those words, Hera finally removed herself from her own grief to look at her father. Although she’d been joking about it before, his age really was starting to show. He was paler and more wrinkled with sun spots marking his now yellowish skin. His air bulges had started to sag and he was missing a few of his crooked teeth. His body with thinner too, he had always been lean but now it was from a lack of muscle and he stood with a slight hunch.

Her father had never been a perfect man but seeing him as anything resembling weak felt unnatural. And that was only from the effects of his age. She had no idea how badly Gobi death had affected him.

But she could already tell that it was bad. After her mother’s death, he hadn’t felt anything but anger. Now he just seemed empty.

Hera barely survived loosing Kanan. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how he could lose the love of his life twice. She was drawn away from these thoughts however when Cham pulled back so that he could grip her shoulders to look her directly into her eyes.

“Hera, Gobi made me realise just how poor of a father I have been. I promise you that I will dedicate the rest of my life to being the father that you deserve.”

Hera didn’t know what to say. All her life all she had ever wanted was for Cham to be her father. And now that actually planned to be she didn’t know what to say. But luckily Jacen did.

“But you’re already the best grandpa. You should come live with us on the Ghost! Then we can be together all the time so that you can the best father to!”

Hera looked down at her amazing son who kept continually surprising her with his brilliance.

“Well, what do you say father?”

“I would love to, if you will allow me.” He asked, looking uncertainly at his daughter.

“Of course we will.” Hera said, for the first time since she could remember initiating a hug between her and her father.

Cham sank into her embrace, probably not having been on the receiving end of a hug since Gobi died. The thought only made Hera hold him tighter. Not wanting to be left out, Jacen wrapped his arms around their legs, nearly making them fall over. Hera let out a light giggle as she picked up her son so he was balanced against her hip. She then held out her other hand towards her father.

“Come on, let’s go home.”

Smiling, Cham took her hand and followed his family to his new home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry!!!!! I’ve had this end planned from the beginning and I had thought about changing it but I was really proud of this chapter so I decided not to. Again I am so sorry!!
> 
> Thank you so much to everyone who read, left kudos and commented on this fic!!! You guys are amazing and have really made this fic worth writing!! I am really proud of this fic and I put way to much effort into writing it since I am the only person on the planet who ships Cham and Gobi. Hopefully I maybe convinced some other people to give this paring a chance. I also really wanted to explore the relationship between Hera and Cham since I find that really interesting and kinda sad. They’re both good people who have different beliefs on what is right. Again thank you so much for reading!! Xxxxxxxxx

**Author's Note:**

> Once again here is a fix that no one has asked for but I have written anyway! I have put way to much effort into this fic! This is liken my magnum opus! 
> 
> Anyway I hope you guys like this story! And I hope you liked the name I picked for Hera’s mother even though in Greek mythology I’m pretty sure Athena is the daughter of Hera but who cares!  
> Rly: eoh uru(little one)
> 
> Xxxxxxxxx


End file.
